SANDPOINT — Oral arguments on Lake Pend Oreille Waterkeeper’s effort to compel the state to embrace the use of biological controls in combating Eurasian milfoil are set for Wednesday in Lewiston. Jeff Brudie, a 2nd District judge with chambers in Nez Perce County, is hearing the case. Lake Pend Oreille Waterkeeper calls the proceeding another critical step in the water quality watchdog group’s journey to add biological controls to the Idaho State Department of Agriculture’s arsenal of methods for controlling the aquatic noxious weed. Waterkeeper filed a petition for judicial review last year, after the ISDA declined to revise its rules to allow for the use of weevils to devour milfoil infestations in the lake. Groups in Bonner County have advocated the use of weevils for the last several years as an alternative to herbicides. Partners for Milfoil Control subsequently raised $150,000 to conduct a research to demonstrate the insects’ efficacy in beating back milfoil. But ISDA blocked the project because it involved placing pieces of weevil-laden Eurasian milfoil back into the water, which the state holds is expressly forbidden under Idaho’s noxious weed law. Waterkeeper subsequently tried to have the state amend the noxious weed law to include the use of biological controls, but the group was rebuffed. The group argues the agency misinterpreted the plain language of the state’s noxious weed law and disregarded its own goals regarding the use of biological controls. ISDA countered that it lacked permitting authority and harbored concerns about the use of weevils. “The fact that the ISDA continues to focus their rationale for rejection of one type of biological control is beyond frustrating. We went to great lengths to ensure that our initial Petition was all encompassing with respect to various forms of biological control, including parasites and pathogens,” Shannon Williamson, executive director of LPOW, said in a statement. ISDA has further argued that LPOW’s substantial rights had not been prejudiced by its decision. LPOW disagrees. “LPOW’s constituents are prejudiced by ISDA because its decision to continue using herbicides to control noxious weeds directly relates to the purpose of LPOW as an organization, which seeks to defend the substantial and fundamental rights of its constituents to clean water,” Williamson said in an affidavit. Counsel for ISDA do not dispute that biological controls have a role in noxious weed controls, but they have to be utilized under the right circumstances. “It simply cannot risk further infestations by allowing the movement and/or introduction of viable noxious weeds into the very environment from which Idaho has sought to eradicate them, whether for research or for other purposes,” deputy attorneys general Angela Kaufmann and Sean Costello said in court documents. Williamson said the group will lobby state lawmakers to bring changes to the noxious weed law if it does not prevail in court. “This has been a long process and valuable learning experience. We don’t take the litigation lightly and only engage in this process when all other options have been exhausted,” said Williamson said in the LPOW’s statement.

The largest coal company in the world, Peabody Energy, is hoping to build an export terminal north of Bellingham, Washington, so that they can export massive amounts of coal from Wyoming and Montana to countries like China and India.The proposed Cherry Point terminal would export approximately 48 million tons of coal per year, which would make it the largest coal export facility in North America. There are an additional four terminals being proposed in Washington and Oregon which would equate to between 126-166 million tons of coal being transported and exported each year. The coal would be transported by open rail cars from the Powder River Basin. These coal trains have serious implications for the environment and the public health of northwestern communities like Sandpoint.Today, Shannon Williamson, Director of the Lake Pend O’reille Waterkeeper, spoke at KEA’s Lunch & Learn to raise awareness about the probable effects that the community of Sandpoint would see if this export terminal is approved.The rail route hugs ~ 30 miles of Lake Pend Oreille’s shoreline before traveling directly over the water by bridge. Currently, Sandpoint sees ~ 50 trains per day. The proposed terminals would more than double train traffic, meaning that Sandpoint would see one train about every 12 minutes, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Note that these trains are each ~1.5miles long with ~100 uncovered cars requiring 4-5 diesel engines each.Burlington Northern Railroad (BNSF) calculated that coal trains lose up to 500 lbs of coal in the form of dust per car en route from mine to port. The coal dust will yield impaired water quality through the leaching of toxic heavy metals. Coal contains heavy metals: aluminum, antimony,arsenic, barium, beryllium, cadmium, calcium, chromium, cobalt, iron, lead, magnesium, manganese, mercury, molybdenum, nickel, potassium, selenium, silver, sodium, strontium, tin vanadium and zinc.Another concern would be the possibility of derailments; which Sandpoint has seen two of in the past year. A derailment over Lake Pend Oreille would poison a major supply of drinking water for the community and would have serious ecological implications.Agencies are currently collecting public comments in their preparation of the Environmental Impact Statements for the Gateway Pacific Terminal in Bellingham, Washington through January 21, 2013. Please consider:Signing a PetitionSubmit Your Comments Online to Army Corps of Engineers, Washington Department of Ecology & Whatcom City Council